1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and system for irradiating drug eluting implantable devices.
2. Description of the Background
Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) is a procedure for treating heart disease. A catheter assembly having a balloon portion is introduced percutaneously into the cardiovascular system of a patient via the brachial or femoral artery. The catheter assembly is advanced through the coronary vasculature until the balloon portion is positioned across the occlusive lesion. Once in position across the lesion, the balloon is inflated to a predetermined size to remodel the vessel wall. The balloon is then deflated to a smaller profile to allow the catheter to be withdrawn from the patient's vasculature.
A problem associated with the above procedure includes formation of intimal flaps or torn arterial linings, which can collapse and occlude the conduit after the balloon is deflated. Vasospasms and recoil of the vessel wall also threaten vessel closure. Moreover, thrombosis and restenosis of the artery may develop over several months after the procedure, which may necessitate another angioplasty procedure or a surgical by-pass operation. To reduce the partial or total occlusion of the artery by the collapse of arterial lining and to reduce the chance of the development of thrombosis and restenosis a stent is implanted in the lumen to maintain the vascular patency.
Stents act as scaffoldings, functioning to physically hold open and, if desired, to expand the wall of the passageway. Typically, stents are capable of being compressed so that they can be inserted through small lumens via catheters and then expanded to a larger diameter once they are at the desired location. Mechanical intervention via stents has reduced the rate of restenosis as compared to balloon angioplasty. Yet, restenosis is still a significant clinical problem with rates ranging from 20-40%. When restenosis does occur in the stented segment, its treatment can be challenging, as clinical options are more limited as compared to lesions that were treated solely with a balloon.
Stents are used not only for mechanical intervention but also as vehicles for providing biological therapy. Biological therapy can be achieved by medicating the stents. Medicated stents provide for the local administration of a therapeutic substance at the diseased site. In order to provide an efficacious concentration to the treated site, systemic administration of such medication often produces adverse or even toxic side effects for the patient. Local delivery is a preferred method of treatment in that smaller total levels of medication are administered in comparison to systemic dosages, but are concentrated at a specific site. Local delivery thus produces fewer side effects and achieves more favorable results.
One proposed method of medicating stents involves the use of a polymeric carrier coated onto the surface of the stent. A composition including a solvent, a polymer dissolved in the solvent, and an active agent dispersed in the blend is applied to the stent by immersing the stent in the composition or by spraying the composition onto the stent. The solvent is allowed to evaporate, leaving on the stent strut surfaces a coating of the polymer and the active agent impregnated in the polymer. In some circumstances, a diffusion or rate-reducing barrier layer is applied to the stent coating to reduce the release rate of the active agent from the coating. The diffusion barrier layer can include a polymer.
The release rate of an active agent may be, under certain circumstances, too low for effective treatment of a patient. For example, some polymers may be impermeable to certain drugs or the polymers may not allow for an adequate release rate of the drug. This may be true, for instance, for polymers having a tight lattice structure used in combination with large-molecule drugs.
Moreover, some polymers used for the coating have limited wettability, in other words, the polymer may allow only a limited penetration of water into the matrix. Coatings constructed of polymers having a low wettability may not be biocompatible with the aqueous blood environment, and may prevent or limit an active agent from being released from the coating. The present invention provides a method and coating to meet the foregoing as well as other needs.